Susan Holland Roberts

Susan Holland Roberts was born in Chicago, Illinois on August 29th 1941, as the first of two daughters (sister Nancy) to Loujean Rose and Bert Holland. Growing up, she attended Oak Park and River Forest High school where she made many good friends she remained in touch with for the rest of her life. She went on to attend college at Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin, before transferring to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where she earned a degree in actuarial science, and was the only woman to earn that degree in a class of 17. That's where she met future husband, Larry Roberts. After graduation, they married and moved to Oak Park where they had three children, Kathryn, William, and Elizabeth.

In 1977, she and the children moved to Aurora, Colorado, chosen due to her love of the state from prior trips, and the good schools. There she worked in the insurance industry for the Hartford, then COPIC, first as a claims adjuster, then manager, then vice president of medical malpractice claims, while providing for and raising her children.

She loved watching the Denver Broncos and going to John Denver and Neil Diamond concerts, often taking one or more of the kids with her. She also loved horses and horse racing and was able to own several horses and shares in others over the years. In the late '90s, she fulfilled a lifelong dream in owning horse property in Parker where she lived for a few years.

Before and during retirement, she enjoyed traveling and spending time with her children and grandchildren, taking trips to Saratoga Springs to see horse racing with Kathy, Maryland to see a horse she had part ownership in, Rome, Italy with Beth, Moab with Bill and his kids, and one of her favorite places, Dead Horse Point in Utah.

For a few years, she moved to Bainbridge Island Washington to be closer to Kathy and her family, which she thoroughly enjoyed, before moving back to Denver to be close to lifelong friends and Bill and his family.

In 2019, Beth did a DNA test and it came back with a potential genetic match. She reached out and discovered Susan's first child, Joe Hnatek, who she had placed for adoption as an infant. She was able to reconnect with him and loved getting to know him and visiting with him.

She loved animals and had many pets over the years including dogs - Jinx, Sadie, Chloe, and Lucy; cats - Miranda and Abby; horses - Molly, ‘Silhoette’, and Sagamoon.

Susan passed away on May, 22nd, with Beth close by and after having been visited by many others in the family. She is survived by her four children: Joe, Kathy, Bill, and Beth; nine grandchildren: Sarah, Joshua, Caleb, Samuel, Elena, Autumn, Bella, Alex, and Giovanni; and two great grandchildren, Simeon and Elliot.

In lieu of flowers and only If you are able to, please consider giving to causes she held dear:

Spirit Ranch (run by a close friend of Susan's) 

Cat rescue 

Aurora animal shelter 

Doctors without borders